Hurt
by Christina E Lupin
Summary: Complete.  Ashlyn Brookhaven loved Tom Riddle more than life itself, but does he feel the same?  Would he ever love anyone?  Tom/OC Rated T for safety


A/N: Ah, yes, another one-shot story, but this one is different than the others I have done. I've had this idea in my head for several months, and it constantly appears in my dreams, never leaving me alone. So, I thought I would post it so that it's out of my head. It's possible that it could be continued, just like Fledgling. We'll see what happens later. I am trying to restart Cheating Life and I am actually almost done with Blood Brothers' new chapter. Fledgling and My Child are a bit slower but they are progressing. So, without further ado, here is my newest one-shot: Hurt.

((((((((Hurt))))))))

"Tom, wait."

Tom Marvolo Riddle didn't stop, as if he had never heard her voice. Ashlyn Brookhaven heaved a sigh and picked up her pace so she could catch up with her boyfriend. She needed to get him to hear her out before he made any more decisions, just like the one he was currently making.

"Tom, please," she yelled, reaching out and grabbing hold of his robes.

Tom paused and the smaller Ravenclaw hid a smile. "Please, don't do it. I beg you."

"And why should I?" Tom asked quietly, staring straight ahead. "Muggles need to be put in their place."

"I'm not talking about that!" Ashlyn cried out.

"I knew I should never have trusted you with this information."

"You should have! Tom, its madness, what you plan on doing. There's a reason why it is labeled as Dark magic. Besides, you don't know if it will work."

Tom fingered his wand hidden inside his sleeve. "I can make the impossible happen. You heard what the other Professors say about my school work."

Ashlyn combed a hand through her chestnut brown hair. "I know. You and I are the top students of our class. But just because you do well here doesn't mean you can do anything you want."

"I'm the heir of Slytherin as well."

"Just because you are related to one of the co-Founding members of this school doesn't mean that you have the power to do anything you bloody well please." She tugged on his robes again, this time succeeding in pulling him toward her. "Tom, please, as your best friend and your girlfriend, just listen to me. Don't do this."

The Slytherin turned so his eyes connected with hers. He seemed to penetrate her very mind and soul, which she knew he could do. After all, she knew him better than anyone else. She hadn't been scared off when he revealed he was a Parselmouth. It wasn't until he started dabbling in Dark magic that she began to question him. Her Tom wouldn't do this. Her Tom was sweet, gentle, intelligent, and clever. No, this new Tom was her Tom anymore. It was like the old Tom simply vanished.

"Give me one good reason," he whispered, brushing the back of his hand against her cheek.

Ashlyn looked deep in his eyes. "Your father was horrible, yes, but that doesn't mean all Muggles are the same. They are just like us, only unable to perform magic. Wizards can be just as bad as Muggles. And…" Here she found she could no longer speak, her heart pounding madly in her chest.

"And what?" he asked, leaning closer.

Oh Merlin, how she could not think when he was this close to her. Her light green eyes flickered to his lips shortly before traveling back up to his eyes. "I love you, Tom. I love you so much. Just stay with me and I can make you feel like you are important to someone, that you are loved by someone."

Tom continued to stare down at her, his face so nearly close to hers. She just wanted to stand on her toes and kiss him, to reassure him of her feelings. Ashlyn had never loved someone as much as she loved Tom. She didn't care about his sometimes darker feelings, for she believed she could cure him of that.

"That's not enough reason for me to not continue on this quest of mine."

He stepped back and whirled around, robes billowing behind him as he left the corridor, leaving Ashlyn staring at his retreating back, tears welling in her eyes. She backed up until she hit a wall and she slid down, releasing her tears but never crying out. She would have to try harder.

((((_))))))

Another year later, during their graduation from Hogwarts, Ashlyn couldn't help but feel hopeless. No matter how hard she tried, Tom continued to remain strong. Just months before, he told her that he no longer wanted her, that he found someone else more appeasing, someone who didn't question his motives. Those words sliced through her heart like several white-hot knives, leaving her feeling shredded, hollow. She had thrown herself into her school work but still came out second in class, with Tom the head.

"Ashlyn Brookhaven."

She stood up straight and headed up to the front to accept her diploma. She didn't smile when she heard the whistles and catcalls and yells of her name throughout the hall. None of them mattered anymore. She shook hands with Headmaster Dippet and stepped down to her seat.

"Tom Riddle."

Tom had to peel himself off of his newest girlfriend in order to accept his roll of parchment. For a moment, his eyes scanned the audience and caught hold of Ashlyn's eyes. He felt a tug on his heart at the blank expression on her face. Never, in all the years he had known her, had she ever looked so blank. It was one of the many reasons he liked her. She wore her emotions on her face and she was honest. Cursing himself, he pulled his eyes away and went back to his seat, mentally wishing he could have sat next to his former best friend.

((((_))))))

Now twenty years old, Ashlyn perched herself on a bar stool, twirling her drink in its glass. She knew she should have never come here, but when she had received that letter this morning from Tom, she found herself immediately accepting. If anything, she could still be his best friend, his confidante, if he needed her.

The bell on top of the door jingled to announce the arrival of a new customer, or a leaving one. She felt her heart race and the butterflies in her stomach. It was as if she was so in-tuned to him that she could sense him from miles away.

"Ash," Tom's velvety voice whispered, taking a seat next to her.

"Tom," she whispered back, never peeling her gaze from the clear liquid in front of her.

"I never took you as the type to drink."

She sighed. "Only recently." She knocked back her drink and slammed it back on the bar. She refused a refill.

Ashlyn heard Tom sigh. "What's happened to you, Ash? You look terrible."

"Life isn't all roses and sunshine to everyone, Tom. I went to college, got a degree, but can't land a job. I can't seem to stay asleep and have already taken more than enough sleeping potions to make me stay asleep for the rest of my life."

"Nightmares?" he whispered, leaning close. She caught a whiff of his cologne and nearly swooned. It was his favorite one.

She straightened. "Why would you care, Tom? Remember, you broke up with me and said you wanted nothing more to do with me. For the hell of it, why are you even here now? Where's your new girl?"

Tom growled. "Ashlyn, don't test my patience. I'm here because I wanted to talk, but not here." 

"Then where, Tom?"

"Follow me." He then jumped off the stool and left the pub. Cursing herself mentally, she hurried after him like the lovesick puppy she was.

((((_))))))

From that night on, no one had ever heard of Ashlyn Brookhaven again. Everyone questioned Tom Riddle, the last one to see her alive, but he seemed to not know. He claimed someone kidnapped her from him, that the kidnapper beat him up first and took her after he was down. Tom had the bruises and cuts to prove it, so no one questioned him. For years, the wizarding world searched and there was no sign of her. Eventually, the case was dropped and her name faded into history. It was as if she never existed.

(Present)

Voldemort perched on his throne, stroking the smooth scales of his snake Nagini, lost in thought. His mind often carried itself back to his school years, when he had met Ashlyn. He had known, even then, that she was something special. He knew he had to know her, had to have her all to himself. When Voldemort thought back to the final night she had been with him, his non-existent heart skipped a beat.

"_Tom, where are we going?" Ashlyn questioned, finally catching up to her former boyfriend._

"_You'll see," he replied._

_They walked for what seemed like hours until Tom stopped suddenly. They were far from any nearby towns, stuck in the middle of nowhere. Ashlyn looked around at the darkened hills of the countryside, feeling cold all of a sudden. She never noticed Tom turn towards her until it was almost too late. Ashlyn was thrown ten feet away and she landed hard on her side. She gasped for breath and watched as Tom walked toward her._

"_Why…" she whimpered. "Why are you doing this?"_

"_Because no one can learn of my secrets, Ashlyn," he replied evenly. "You are the only one who knows of my plan to utilize the use of Horcruxes. If anyone found out…."_

"_Please, Tom, I won't say a word!" she cried._

_He kneeled down and grabbed her head, pulling her hair until her face met his. He summoned all of his will not to crumble at the look on her face: the hurt, the betrayal, the pain. Tom pressed his wand to the base of her neck. "I can't believe that you would. There is no one I can trust, no one I can befriend."_

"_Don't alienate yourself!" she screamed, never looking away. "I love you, Tom. I always have and I always will. Don't do it!"_

"_I am sorry."_

_Her eyes widened and Tom forced himself to look away, to picture his father instead of her, as he cast the cutting curse. Ashlyn didn't scream or yell. To this day, Tom never knew if that was a good thing or not. He stood up and left, never looking back, for he knew he would break if he saw her like that, her lifeblood draining rapidly from her warm body. He had never anticipated, however, that her body hadn't been found, for he had cast no spells of invisibility or any repelling spells for that matter._

"Ashlyn," Voldemort whispered, the name feeling stiff and foreign on his tongue. What would she say, if she saw him like this? Would she still love him, a cold, heartless monster that he was?

((((_)))))

Fin


End file.
